Featured Donation Opportunities

Support Asylum Seekers:

As many have read in recent newspaper articles, there are many asylum seekers in Portland who are staying at our Family Shelter and overflow spaces, in addition to receiving support from the City's Portland Community Support Fund. Many have asked how they can provide support. The City will use any monetary donations received to provide shelter/housing assistance and basic human necessities.

Support the Opportunity Crew:

The Portland Opportunity Crew is a pilot program building on the successes several other cities have had such as in Albuquerque, New Mexico and San Jose, California. The program offers panhandlers the opportunity to earn money to cleanup public areas and links them with needed services, such as job training and support. Workers will pick up trash and beautify the city's parks and trails, primarily on the peninsula. Program participants will be paid minimum wage, which in Portland is $10.68 an hour, at the end of the shift.

The City's Social Services Division is working with the City's Parks Division to run the program. It will operate two days a week for approximately 36 weeks from April/May through November, and on each day up to five people will be hired. The City is partnering with Workforce Solutions and People Ready to link participants with additional services such as job training and employment support.

For more information on this program, please read the documents below or reach out to Julie Sullivan, Senior Advisor to the City Manager, at jas@portlandmaine.gov.

Support the Skatepark Expansion:

The Portland Parks Division is in the early stages of planning an expansion to the much-used and overcrowded skatepark at Dougherty Field. The current skatepark is 8,350 sq feet. The expansion will make it a total of 14,850 sq feet! Help us create a much safer, more fun skatepark for the community! As of right now, a committee has been created to begin fundraising. Their first fundraising event is a Rail Trail at Payson Park. For more information Click Here.

As we get closer to construction (1-3 years away), we will keep neighborhood involved and informed.